(Hired) Guns N' Roses
I went to the Guns N' Roses show in Columbus this week. This is the review that I turned into the ALIVE. I believe it will be published tomorrow but I thought I'd give you a sneak preview. The final version may look a little different as my editor may help me out a bit and clean it up.
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Between Mixmaster Mike and Guns N’ Roses, Nationwide Arena resembled a Girls Gone Wild video as a dozen or so “healthy” young ladies lifted their tops for the arena’s video cameras which displayed the footage on the two large screens on either side of the stage. Nope, things haven’t changed much since the last time Guns N’ Roses graced the concert stage ten years ago -- well, not unless you count getting rid of all your band members and replacing them with a hodge podge of talented musicians.
Axl Rose has been in the processing of regrouping Guns N’ Roses since original members Slash and Duff McKagen finally tired of the countless recording delays and bolted to start their own bands. He appears to have finally settled on a semi-permanent line-up that includes, among others, bassist Tommy Stinson (The Replacements) and guitarist Buckethead whose shtick includes wearing a KFC bucket on his head and a white mask that makes him resemble Michael Meyers from the Halloween movie series.
Rose finally presented the reincarnated Guns N’ Roses to Columbus earlier this week at Nationwide Arena and while the new band was able to replicate the classic GN’R sound, they did little else. Although each of the individual band members have distinguished recording careers outside of GN’R, they did little to differentiate themselves from local musicians who play in Guns N’ Roses cover bands. But it didn’t matter too much because the fans, a majority of which were 30-something short-haired males (a far cry from the crowds GN’R was drawing ten years ago), were there to hear the hits, not to analyze anybody’s resume. As long as Axl Rose was doing the singing, the masses were happy.
During the two-hour, seventeen-song set, (Hired) Guns N’ Roses ripped through the original band’s catalog of greatest hits, including nine songs from GN’R’s breakthrough release, Appetite For Destruction. Technically proficient and nearly flawless, the band seemed too professional to be called Guns N’ Roses. Part of the excitement of GN’R shows back in the early ‘90s was the uncertainty that came with those performances. Would Rose show up on time? Would Slash get wasted before the show or would he wait until he was on stage to down a bottle of Jack? These days it’s all business, I don’t even remember seeing any beer bottles on stage – an obvious sign that Rose has replaced the original members with robotic clones.
Rose, who in the past wasn’t known to be the most personable front man, took a few occasions to speak with the crowd. Due to the fact that Guns N’ Roses is no longer the biggest band in the world (they only filled about 80% of the hockey arena), Rose was wise to chat it up with the audience. Eleven years is an awful long time between albums and if Rose wants to continue to lead the lifestyle he’s been living the last 15 years, he’ll want to make sure that the fans remember Guns N’ Roses and go out and buy Chinese Democracy (if it’s ever actually released). If he acts like an egotistical wealthy rock star, the fans aren’t going to support him in the future.
A third of the way through the set, Rose took a few minutes to discuss the recent riots that took place on and around the OSU campus. He said that he was watching the news when a story about the riots came on. He told the audience that his initial reaction was to say, “Fuck, am I late again?,” an obvious reference to GN’R’s first show of this tour in Vancouver which was cancelled due to Rose’s inability to make it to the venue by show time. The cancellation of the show led to a riot, something that GN’R hasn’t been immune to in the past (they once cancelled a show in Montreal after Rose got pissed with the audience which in turn incited a riot). The light humor worked with the crowd, which roared in approval as they did with all of the songs in the set.
While hardcore fans many have been disappointed that Rose couldn’t patch up his differences with former band mates, most of the people at Nationwide Arena couldn’t have cared less, as long as they got to hear Rose singing classics like “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “You Could Be Mine,” and “Nighttrain.” Guns N’ Roses even treated the audience to three new tracks, the best of which, “Madagascar,” mixed the piano-driven sentimentality of “November Rain” with the political statements of “Civil War.” With images of large stained glass windows projected behind the band during this song, “Madagascar,” despite being new, was a highlight among highlights.
The show ended in fireworks explosions and confetti being shot out of air cannons as the band ripped through a rousing rendition of “Paradise City.” If Rose really wanted to make a statement and return to the top of the dung heap of new rock pretenders, he’d give Slash a call, buy him a bottle of Jack, and invite him and Duff and Izzy to pile into the tour bus and hit football stadiums this summer. Now that would be a reunion worth shelling out the big bucks to see.
I went to the Guns N' Roses show in Columbus this week. This is the review that I turned into the ALIVE. I believe it will be published tomorrow but I thought I'd give you a sneak preview. The final version may look a little different as my editor may help me out a bit and clean it up.
------------------
Between Mixmaster Mike and Guns N’ Roses, Nationwide Arena resembled a Girls Gone Wild video as a dozen or so “healthy” young ladies lifted their tops for the arena’s video cameras which displayed the footage on the two large screens on either side of the stage. Nope, things haven’t changed much since the last time Guns N’ Roses graced the concert stage ten years ago -- well, not unless you count getting rid of all your band members and replacing them with a hodge podge of talented musicians.
Axl Rose has been in the processing of regrouping Guns N’ Roses since original members Slash and Duff McKagen finally tired of the countless recording delays and bolted to start their own bands. He appears to have finally settled on a semi-permanent line-up that includes, among others, bassist Tommy Stinson (The Replacements) and guitarist Buckethead whose shtick includes wearing a KFC bucket on his head and a white mask that makes him resemble Michael Meyers from the Halloween movie series.
Rose finally presented the reincarnated Guns N’ Roses to Columbus earlier this week at Nationwide Arena and while the new band was able to replicate the classic GN’R sound, they did little else. Although each of the individual band members have distinguished recording careers outside of GN’R, they did little to differentiate themselves from local musicians who play in Guns N’ Roses cover bands. But it didn’t matter too much because the fans, a majority of which were 30-something short-haired males (a far cry from the crowds GN’R was drawing ten years ago), were there to hear the hits, not to analyze anybody’s resume. As long as Axl Rose was doing the singing, the masses were happy.
During the two-hour, seventeen-song set, (Hired) Guns N’ Roses ripped through the original band’s catalog of greatest hits, including nine songs from GN’R’s breakthrough release, Appetite For Destruction. Technically proficient and nearly flawless, the band seemed too professional to be called Guns N’ Roses. Part of the excitement of GN’R shows back in the early ‘90s was the uncertainty that came with those performances. Would Rose show up on time? Would Slash get wasted before the show or would he wait until he was on stage to down a bottle of Jack? These days it’s all business, I don’t even remember seeing any beer bottles on stage – an obvious sign that Rose has replaced the original members with robotic clones.
Rose, who in the past wasn’t known to be the most personable front man, took a few occasions to speak with the crowd. Due to the fact that Guns N’ Roses is no longer the biggest band in the world (they only filled about 80% of the hockey arena), Rose was wise to chat it up with the audience. Eleven years is an awful long time between albums and if Rose wants to continue to lead the lifestyle he’s been living the last 15 years, he’ll want to make sure that the fans remember Guns N’ Roses and go out and buy Chinese Democracy (if it’s ever actually released). If he acts like an egotistical wealthy rock star, the fans aren’t going to support him in the future.
A third of the way through the set, Rose took a few minutes to discuss the recent riots that took place on and around the OSU campus. He said that he was watching the news when a story about the riots came on. He told the audience that his initial reaction was to say, “Fuck, am I late again?,” an obvious reference to GN’R’s first show of this tour in Vancouver which was cancelled due to Rose’s inability to make it to the venue by show time. The cancellation of the show led to a riot, something that GN’R hasn’t been immune to in the past (they once cancelled a show in Montreal after Rose got pissed with the audience which in turn incited a riot). The light humor worked with the crowd, which roared in approval as they did with all of the songs in the set.
While hardcore fans many have been disappointed that Rose couldn’t patch up his differences with former band mates, most of the people at Nationwide Arena couldn’t have cared less, as long as they got to hear Rose singing classics like “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “You Could Be Mine,” and “Nighttrain.” Guns N’ Roses even treated the audience to three new tracks, the best of which, “Madagascar,” mixed the piano-driven sentimentality of “November Rain” with the political statements of “Civil War.” With images of large stained glass windows projected behind the band during this song, “Madagascar,” despite being new, was a highlight among highlights.
The show ended in fireworks explosions and confetti being shot out of air cannons as the band ripped through a rousing rendition of “Paradise City.” If Rose really wanted to make a statement and return to the top of the dung heap of new rock pretenders, he’d give Slash a call, buy him a bottle of Jack, and invite him and Duff and Izzy to pile into the tour bus and hit football stadiums this summer. Now that would be a reunion worth shelling out the big bucks to see.
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